Steel Templars
The Steel Templars are rumoured to be a Successor Chapter of the Imperial Fists created during the Tenth Founding. Has close ties with its founding chapter as well as Salamanders and Black Templars. Famed throughout every battle they take place in due to their use of shock tactics and all out warfare. History The Steel Templars were established as a chapter during the middle of M34. The Steel Templars spent the first few centuries of their existence as a space-faring Chapter. It was only after the Crusade of Holy Retribution in which several chaos held systems were purged and reclaimed by Imperial forces when they finally received their current Fortress Monastery. The Chapter initially started out with a disaster. During the second year of the chapter’s history it suffered a grave defeat at the hands of the Orks in their home sector. The entire 8th and 5th Companies were wiped out and it would be years before both those companies were at full strength again. Homeworld The chapter’s fortress monastery is located on the largest of Valeria’s moons. It is a rugged rock whose inhospitable atmosphere stages many of the legions training exercises. Notable Engagements WAAAGH! Skullgitz- A massive ork horde assembled under the control of Warboss Skullgitz descended upon the Haven Sub-Sector where the 8th, 5th and 2nd companies of the Steel Templars where resupplying themselves after an engagement in a nearby sector. The 8th and the 2nd took the brunt of the Orkish assault and suffered massive casualties with the 8th fighting down to the last man. However the 2nd had managed in this time to prepare the defenses on the world of Haven Prime where the horde sent the rest of its numbers. While many of the hive cities on the world fell the main ones managed to hold against the green tide and after several weeks of combat Warboss Skullgitz showed himself at the front of the horde. Captain Seval of the 2nd lead the remainder of his company in a charge against the Warboss. In a duel between the pair the Captain struck down the monstrous ork ending his life and sending the rest of the greenskins into a disordered rabble. In the following weeks several Imperial Guard regiments assisted by the Steel Templars purged the surviving Orks from the sector. The losses suffered by the Steel Templars would take them many years to recover from. Lutar IV- On the agriworld of Lutar IV the entire forces of the second, fourth, fifth and eighth fought alongside various elements of the first to push back a major chaos offensive taken during the Thamos Crusade. In this planet-wide conflict the Steel Templars had to fight against a number of Chaos Marine warbands. After weeks of holding the lines against these foul forces things started to look up for the battered Imperial forces as a large relief force was spotted on the edge of the system. The Chapter Master and his honour guard rallied the weary forces and led a collective charge of both Steel Templars and guard forces into the chaos ranks knowing that victory was near. It was here that a daemonic chaos lord engaged the Chapter Master and his honour guard. It was a battle that could only end one way, with the Chapter Master lying dead on the steps of the Imperial cathedral his honour guard’s corpses surrounding him. Thechaos forces were defeated but at a great cost to the Imperial forces. 13th Black Crusade- The Steel Templars sent both the 4th and 6th Companies to the help hold back the tide of Chaos. Both Companies have suffered heavy casualties during the crusade so far and the current state of both are unknown. Combat Doctrine and Organization The Steel Templars battle tactics involve hitting the enemy hard before they have a chance to react. Because of these tactics their Chapter holds large stocks of armoured vehicles and transports as well as holding many suits of the revered terminator armour. Part of this tactic draws from their geneseed flaw which makes them perfect for such a role. The Steel Templars see the Codex Astartes as a set of guidelines that is not entirely crucial to the success of the organisation rather than a set of rules that must be followed exactly as it is written. Within the Chapter it is used as a basic set of instuctions which is then used to help set up the more advanced structures within the Chapter. The Steel Templars also do not use the 10th as a Scout company. Instead all Companies except the 1st have a small detachment of Scouts which help observe the battleground for their brothers. They have a distinct advantage over their older brothers in that their "Steel Skin" has not fully taken them over yet meaning that they move faster which suits their role perfectly as Scouts. '''Chaplains- '''Steel Templar Chaplains are akin to the Iron Fathers used by the Iron Hands. All Chaplains within the chapter are all ex-Techmarines who have given up their role as a servant of the Machine God. They are particularly spiritual marines whose devotion to the Emperor is equal if not greater than their love for the Machine God. Their helmets are of a unique design, half of it being made of bone that bears resemblance to the skull side of the Mechanicus sign while the other half is steel that has been fused into the bone complete with cybernetic replacements. This shows their devotion to both the Emperor and the Machine God. '''Librarians- '''The usage of psykers within the Chapter is very limited as few are inducted into it in the first place. The Chapter is generally welcoming of these talented individuals although a few Captains remain distrustful of them. For most Librarians they spend their time in the Fortress Monestry writing down the records of the Chapter or pursuing knowledge through the extensive libraries there thus becoming the scribes and lorekeepers for the Chapter. Only a few are used on the battlefield but these are typically the oldest and most powerful ones within the Chapter. These few have developed a psychic power aptly named "Steel Flesh" that turns their already tough skin into a metal like substance. By drawing on the warp they form a fog like substance that bonds with the flesh for a sort period that despite it's metal like appearance weighs little if at all. Armory The marines of the Steel Templars Chapter favour flame based weapons such as meltas and flamers however different companies have, after time, become more specialised in what weapons they choose to use, the 9th Company prefers to use close combat weapons for instance. The Steel Templars have their own variant of the famed Vindicator siege tanks named the "Death-Fire" Class Vindicator. It was gifted to them by the Angelic Knights whom they mantain a close friendship with. The main difference with this variant is the lack of a demolisher cannon but instead having it replaced by a powerful Flamestorm cannon. This coupled with the heavy armor of the tank as well as the siege shield make it a powerful close range vehicle that excels in urban warfare. Notable Members Simeon Valatos- Was the last surviving member of the Honour Guard on Lutar IV. After a period of self-exile he returned to help the Chapter rebuild after a series of devastating defeats. Raised to the position of 1st Company Captain shortly after. Chaplain Grigor- Current Head Chaplain for the Chapter Brother Sergeant Valtius- Devestator of the 10th Company Notable Units The Steel Guard is the elite honour guard unit made up of the best warriors drawn from the ranks of the 1st Company. They must have proven themselves on countless battlefields to be accepted into the squad. They are equipped with the very best that the Chapter can offer. The entire 9th Company of the Steel Templars bears the name of honorary name of Hussarat. This is a connection with the famed horse warriors of Old Terra. The 9th Company tactic revolves around fast attacking warfare, plunging into the enemy ranks with speed and precision. Often they repeat this tactic several times before the enemy lines crumble. It is a great honor to be placed within this Company and many enemies have broken at the sight of the 9th Company banners. Geneseed The Steel Templar geneseed is a stable one most of the time with only a few rare occasions where it failed to work with the initiate. There is a key flaw within it though, one that has given itself to the Chapters name and combat doctrine. The "Steel Skin" is a defect that due to the skin pigmentation creates a layer of grey "scales" over the marines normal skin. These scales make the Steel Templars more resilient to damage, especially flame based weapons, but with one important issue. The added weight of these scales makes the marine much slower than their counterparts which is why they rely upon their transports to quickly enter them into combat, allowing these deadly heavy shock marines to get to grips with their enemies faster.